Lake Dalrymple created through the construction of the Burdekin Falls Dam.
The Burdekin Falls Dam in flooding.
The first fill of the Burdekin Falls Dam (1988).
Left to Right : Mark Stoneman (MP), Hon Ralph Hunt (MP), Hon Ian Sinclair (MP), Paul Johnson (Queensland Water Resources), Senator David Brownhill, Senator Ron Boswell.
Burdekin Falls Dam near completion with water building up (1987).
The western side (water side) of the Burdekin Falls Dam near completion in construction (1987).
The flow splitters at foot of Burdekin Falls Dam spillway in construction.
The lower crossing road below the Burdekin Falls Dam.
The western face side of the Burdekin Falls Dam wall. This side would be the water side when filled.
The north eastern abutment, bucket tower and outlets of the Burdekin Falls Dam in construction. This photograph was taken from what would become the water side of the dam.
The south west of the Burdekin River looking across the western side (water side) of the Burdekin Falls Dam.
The south western edge of Burdekin Falls Dam in construction.
The "gap" being filled in the Burdekin Falls Dam wall.
The construction of the right abutment and control gate area of the Burdekin Falls Dam.
This photograph shows the initial construction of the "gap" in the Burdekin Falls Dam.
This photograph shows the gap that was left open in the Burdekin Falls Dam to allow for normal flows to continue as the Dam was being built. This photograph was taken from the South Western Bank.
The south western bank of the Burdekin River and early pouring of the first level of the Burdekin Falls Dam.
The north eastern section of the Burdekin Falls Dam going up. This photograph was taken from the lookout.
The commencement of the footings for the Burdekin Falls Dam.
The 1st pour of concrete and Hon. John Goleby (then Queensland Minister for Water Resources) and Mark Stoneman (then Member for Burdekin) holding a horseshoe to be laid for good luck.
Photo taken from the North Eastern bank of the Burdekin River over construction of the Burdekin Falls Dam.
Photo taken from the the line on which the future Burdekin Falls Dam wall would be facing the abutment of the North East bank of the Burdekin River. Location is ready for first stage of concrete to be poured.
A concrete batching plant sent up in situ at the construction site of the Burdekin Falls Dam.
The 1st floor of the future Burdekin Falls Dam and water supply flowing through (1982).
The preparation of abutments for the Burdekin Falls Dam on the North-Eastern Bank (1982).
Clearing rock debris from the Burdekin Falls Dam site (1982).
The construction village that existed during the construction of the Burdekin Falls Dam.
Machinery preparing the rock base at the Burdekin Falls Dam site (1982).
Opening of the Access Road for the Burdekin Falls Dam. Left to Right: Hon Martin Tenni (then Minister for Water Resources), Mark Stoneman (then Member for Burdekin), Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen (then Premier of Queensland), Peter Black (then Chairman of the Dalrymple Shire), Don Beattie (then Queensland Water Resources Commissioner)
The lookout tower and first access road across Burdekin Falls Dam site.
Left bank of the Burdekin Falls Dam site.
Looking downstream from the Burdekin Falls Dam site.
The site for the new Burdekin Falls Dam.
This collection of historical photos cover the construction period of the Burdekin Falls Dam.
Lake Dalrymple is an artificial lake formed by the Burdekin Falls Dam, with construction commencing in 1982, completed in 1987 and officially opened on 14 August 1988. The dam and lake are owned and operated by SunWater. The lake is located approximately 125 kilometers south south-west of Townsville and approximately 75 kilometers south-east of Charters Towers.
The completed Burdekin Falls Dam in 1987 with the dam now filling and construction village being wound down. (Photo credit: Mark Stoneman).
The dam capacity is 1,860,000 ML with an area of 22,400 hectares, which equates to approximately four times the size of Sydney Harbor. The dam is the largest in Queensland. The dam wall is 876 meters long with a 504 meter spill way which drops 37 meters to the river bed. The lake is deemed to be a wetland of national significance.
The dam is the key source of water for agricultural and industrial uses and beyond into the Central Queensland coal fields and the urban/industrial centre of Townsville.
Water allocations from the Burdekin Falls Dam are not diverted at the dam but rather released down the Burdekin river and then extracted at various weirs and pump stations in the Lower Burdekin, including Gorge Weir, Blue Valley Weir, Clare Weir and the Haughton Balancing Storage.
The Burdekin Falls Dam operates in conjunction with the existing storages of Clare Weir and Gorge Weir on the Burdekin River, and Val Bird and Giru weirs on the Haughton River at Giru. Pump stations are located on the Burdekin River, within the Clare Weir storage, to divert water to the Haughton, Elliot and Barratta Main Channels.
Lake Dalrymple itself is used recreationally. Fishing and water skiing are popular activities. Species regularly caught in the dam include sooty grunter (black bream) of two species, sleepy cod, archerfish, catfish (both eel tail and fork tail), eel and spangled perch. Yellowbelly and golden perch are being regularly caught – they are accidental releases from farm dams – while Barramundi have been released into the dam but are not regularly caught (Greiner and Hall 2006).
